The Mission
by gawilliams
Summary: Episode addition to Toxicity. Miko learns of Bulheads injury and has a difficult time dealing with it.


_I was struck by this past weeks episode, Toxicity, and the development of the Fowler/Bulkhead dynamic, and also the depth of Bulkhead's feelings for Miko and their friendship. I wrote this one to look at both in a short, but, I hope, effective way. I hope you enjoy this one shot. Gregg._

_Disclaimer: I don't own, or profit from, these characters or franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

Fowler hated what he was going to have to do any minute now. Bulkhead was in the medical lab and Ratchet wasn't sure if the big lug was going to make it. The wound had been severe and Ratchet had cursed rather viciously about the insidious weapon that the Insecticon had used on him. Now Miko was coming back and he had to tell her that Bulkhead was in a bad way.

Contrary to what many may have thought, Fowler really liked the kids, and thought that despite their ages they added a lot to Team Prime. Miko was a loose canon, sure, but she had some real spunk and was always there to defend her team. In a way she was like that odd man out that kept the squad on their toes. But with Miko there was no doubt that if it hit the fan, she'd be right there by your side fighting it out with you taking on all comers. But now she had to face the possibility that her best friend may not make it.

"Hey, Fowler," Miko said with a wide grin. "Got any new cookies from Grandma?" she teased.

Fowler groaned. He hated how loopy he got when he was messed up, and Miko was just the kind of person to milk it for all it was worth. But now wasn't the time for joking around. "Not today," he replied.

Miko noticed that he wasn't taking the bait, so she looked around. "Where's Bulkhead?" she asked. "I gotta tell him all about the mission and how we took on an Insecticon!"

"_**We**_?" Arcee asked, a smile on her faceplate.

"I was there and there was more than one of us, so it was a _**we**_," Miko defended her _**slight**_ exaggeration. At least slight in her own mind. "Now where's Bulk? He should be back by now."

"He's in the Med Lab," Fowler said, keeping his tone low and downcast, hoping she would pick up on the subtext.

The change in tone was not lost on Miko at all, as she was, despite appearances, very smart. "What happened," she demanded, trying to keep the instant panic out of her voice. She looked at Fowler when he didn't answer. "He's going to be okay, isn't he?" she asked, suddenly feeling very vulnerable.

Fowler decided to not sugar coat it. "I don't, Miko, but it doesn't look good," he told the teenager.

"What happened?" Arcee demanded. She could see how distressed Miko was, and wanted to know what had happened so that the girl could possibly deal with this.

"Bulkhead wound up facing Insecticons," Fowler told them. "It turns out that the relic was a cache of Tox-N and Bulkhead had to take it and throw it in the active volcano. He had it out of the container and carried it like that so he could leave a little present for the 'Cons."

"Bulkhead was exposed?" Arcee gasped. Like all of them she knew what Tox-N could do, and while she had never seen the results firsthand, she shuddered at what Bulkhead went through.

"What's Tox-N?" Miko demanded, her voice shallow and her eyes wide with genuine fright.

"It's a deadly form of Energon," Arcee explained. She went through Earth's internet quickly and made a comparison. "It's kind of like a Cybertronian version of Sarin gas only it's a solid and a gas depending on whether it's raw or refined."

"Why wasn't I told?" Miko looked daggers at Fowler.

Fowler hated being the bearer of bad news, and this hurt more than anything, but he also had a job to do, and these kids needed to learn that if they wanted to be a part of the big leagues, then this was the kind of thing that came with it. He knew that Jack was well aware of this, and he was reasonably sure Raf was, too, given his almost dying when Megatron shot that energy blast of Dark Energon at Bee with Raf in the Scout.

"Bulkhead had a job to do, and he did it because if Megatron and the 'Cons got a hold of this stuff then it's curtains for Prime and the rest," he said firmly. "If you want to be angry, Miko, then be pissed at me. I was with him all the way over the comm and pushed him when he needed it to get it done. So blame me. But don't argue about his mission, or the fact that he put himself in harms way. For what it's worth, you should know that he did it for _**you**_, and he was _**always**_ asking if you'd gotten your mission done and were safe. He was proud of you, Miko. You should be proud of him, no matter how this turns out."

Miko was in a fury, and when she got a good tongue lashing by the Fed she let out a disgusted scream and left the control room to head for the Med Lab. Fowler slumped a bit and sighed. He hated doing that, but she needed to hear it. He was startled when he heard a voice next to him.

"You did the right thing telling her that," Arcee said simply. "She needs to learn that this war isn't fun and games. It can be deadly and we all have a part to play."

"We're trained for war, Arcee," Fowler said, his voice showing his feelings of defeat and weariness. "I just hate that these kids, no matter how talented and good they are, have to grow up so damned fast. I just tried to teach her a lesson that many people who are a lot older and have a lot more experience in the world have a hard time understanding."

"She'll understand, and respect you for what you just did," Arcee replied. As annoying as Miko could be, Arcee saw something in the human girl that spoke of the person she was becoming. Arcee liked what she saw. "Me and Jack are going to take a ride. Keep me informed on how Bulkhead's doing."

"Sure thing, Arcee," Fowler said as he climbed the ladder to the control level of the control room. He needed some more coffee and wanted to be available in case Prime needed any more help from his end.

Miko entered the Med Lab and stood to the side of the doorway, just inside, watching Ratchet work on her best friend. She was horrified to see Bulkhead lying on his front, his back armor open with Ratchet working feverishly on the systems and parts on display. To her Bulk was the epitome of strength and vitality. To see him like this was giving her a real reality check on his dangerous the 'Cons and this war really were. For the first time since meeting the Autobots she was scared. Even in the mine she had not been scared. Determined, yes, as she had wanted to get them out of there, but not scared. Bulkhead had been there with her and she felt safe. Finally after about an hour of watching Ratchet finished and closed the armor, melding it seamlessly.

"Is he going to be okay, Ratchet?" she asked in a very subdued tone.

Ratchet had known she was in the room the second she entered, his internal scanners having alerted him to the presence. He hadn't had the time or the inclination to tell her to leave. He knelt down on one knee so he was on a much closer level to her.

"I've done what I can, Miko," he told her. "The effects of the prolonged exposure to the Tox-N severely damaged several of his main subsystems and also his T-Cog. That, added to the damage inflicted by the implosion blast from the Insecticon weapon, makes it too early to tell whether he will ever be able to recover full mobility, and energon processing capacity."

"Is he awake? Can I talk to him?" she asked, trying not to let her dread at the horrible possibility show.

"I need to place him in stasis to let the main repairs to his subsystems take hold and reboot, but I can wait on that for a few minutes," Ratchet let her know. He stood up, keeping his optics on her. "I will be back in five minutes to place him in stasis."

"Thank, Ratchet," Miko said gratefully.

When Ratchet left the Med Lab Miko went over to the platform Bulkhead was on. She looked up at his face and waved when his blue optics focused on her.

"Hey, Bulk," she said with as much cheer as she could muster. "I'm back and we got the relic," she told him.

"That's my girl," Bulkhead said with effort. "I knew you'd get the job done. Is everyone okay?"

"Just fine," Miko replied. Then she lost her composure. "I'm scared, Bulk. I can't lose you. You're my best friend!"

"I ain't going anywhere, Miko," Bulkhead tried to reassure her, even though he knew he was fighting some serious odds here, according to Ratchet. "And you need to be tough. You're a Wrecker, Miko, and you have a job to do. You and Fowler, both."

"Fowler didn't even let me know you were in danger!" Miko spat.

"Miko," Bulkhead said in a serious tone. "Fowler did _**exactly**_ what he had to do. He made me remember what I am, and what I needed to do. And _**why**_. I was wrong about him, Miko, and you are, too. He's as much a Wrecker as me, Wheeljack, and you are. And Wrecker's stick together. Understand?"

"I think so," Miko told him. Maybe she had been unfair to Fowler. She would have to think about it.

"Now let Ratchet put me in stasis. The sooner he does, then the sooner I can get out of here," Bulkhead told her. "And remember. You owe me that story."

"Okay, Bulk," Miko said and looked earnestly into his optics. "I'll be here when you wake up."

"I know you will," Bulkhead replied.

_**One Week Later**_

Bulkhead had recovered, and was doing well. Ratchet had him on light duty restricted to the base, but that would be ending soon. Bulkhead had spent a lot of time with Miko and traded stories back and forth like always. But he especially enjoyed her tale of the mission to Nemesis, and then to Manhattan.

With Miko on his shoulder he entered the control room where he found Fowler. He'd been looking for him.

"Fowler," Bulkhead said as he walked over to the control section.

Fowler turned and smiled. "Hey, Two Ton," he said, using the nickname he'd called the Wrecker when he was on the latest mission.

"I've got something for you," Bulkhead said, his hand coming up and letting Fowler take a small box.

"What's this?" Fowler asked, shocked at getting a gift. He opened it up and saw a small Autobot symbol in black.

"You saved my life on that mission, Ranger," Bulkhead told him, using the title that Fowler once used professionally. "I owe you everything. The Wrecker's never had a symbol of anything, but I wanted to give you something to show that I consider you a Wrecker and tell you that you can have my back on any mission, just like Miko here and any other Wrecker."

Fowler was deeply moved. "Thanks, Bulkhead," he said after a moment. He had a feeling that the Wreckers were as tight knit as the Rangers and only rarely did an outsider merit the title. "I'm honored."

"Miko and me were going to go and swap some war stories," Bulkhead told him. "Wanna join us? I still want to hear about that time behind enemy lines you mentioned."

Fowler climbed on and the three of them left the control room together. Despite the dangers of the mission, something good had come of it. Miko had learned a valuable lesson in life, and Fowler had earned the respect of Bulkhead. They may not be best buddies, but it was a start.

_A/N: There it is. I know I usually write Jack/Arcee, but this story was just begging to be told after the latest episode. I hope you all enjoyed it. I will be posting a new chapter to _Home_, and also _The Key: Aftermath_, sometime within this next week. Thank you for the response to all my _Transformers Prime_ stories so far. Gregg. _


End file.
